Tom Hanks has recently shared his thoughts on why he would hesitate to accept the role of a gay man in the film “Philadelphia” if the opportunity arose today, a part that previously garnered him an Oscar for Best Actor.
The 67-year-old actor portrayed Andrew Beckett, a young lawyer grappling with AIDS while navigating a homophobic society, in the groundbreaking 1993 film. Despite his celebrated performance at the time, Hanks expressed a changed perspective in a candid 2022 interview with David Marchese of The New York Times.
Addressing the evolving standards in casting, Hanks responded to Marchese’s assertion that, “There’s no way a straight actor would be cast in Philadelphia today and Forrest Gump would be dead in the water.” Hanks acknowledged, “Let’s address ‘could a straight man do what I did in Philadelphia now?’ No, and rightly so. The whole point of Philadelphia was don’t be afraid. One of the reasons people weren’t afraid of that movie is that I was playing a gay man.”
Hanks elaborated on the shift towards a demand for more authenticity, adding, “We’re beyond that now, and I don’t think people would accept the inauthenticity of a straight guy playing a gay guy. It’s not a crime, it’s not boohoo, that someone would say we are going to demand more of a movie in the modern realm of authenticity.”
When discussing “Forrest Gump,” another one of his iconic films, Hanks questioned whether actor Gary Sinise’s portrayal of Lieutenant Dan would be acceptable today since Sinise is not disabled. Marchese replied that the film would likely face scrutiny on social media before its release due to its premise alone, reflecting the current cultural context where films are frequently dissected online.
Reflecting on the cultural impact of “Forrest Gump,” Hanks mused, “The problem is it made a billion dollars. If we’d just made a successful movie, Bob and I would have been geniuses. But because we made a wildly successful movie, we were diabolical geniuses.”
Hanks also pointed out the ongoing debate regarding the film’s accolades, “There’s books of the greatest movies of all time, and Forrest Gump doesn’t appear because, oh, it’s this sappy nostalgia fest. Every year there’s an article that goes, ‘The Movie That Should Have Won Best Picture’ and it’s always Pulp Fiction. Pulp Fiction is a masterpiece without a doubt.”
In reflecting on the nuanced performances and societal perceptions, Hanks highlights the evolving landscape of film and representation, acknowledging both his roles and their impact on contemporary audiences.